Casual Curses & Meticulous Magic by Lee Roland - Excerpt & Review

What happens when a dysfunctional
witch and a tough PI work together to save an aging apartment house filled with
ghosts, dragons and one oversexed house plant?

Spirits, spells and mayhem…Magic
rises in the Gramarye

Melian Devlin is a witch who
often resorts to exotic and slightly illegal methods of acquiring money to
maintain the 300-year-old Gramarye, the stone apartment house that’s her heart
and home. Her life is a series of skirmishes that occasionally end with her
behind bars.

Titus Moran is a no-nonsense PI
who makes big bucks busting insurance fraud schemes. So how did he wind up in a tortuous battle to
keep Melian out of jail? Did the
delightful young witch with her gray eyes and magic at her fingertips enchant
him—or does the Gramarye hold greater mysteries.

Titus will enter a new exciting
world when he joins Melian in her quest to save the Gramarye. Melian will fumble along in her usual
impulsive way, leaving a trail of disasters behind her. If they’re lucky, they might survive.

Excerpt

Melian Devlin
considered her arrest late Friday evening an ill omen, a portent of dire thingsto
come. At the very least, it would ruin her weekend. Her bad luck had continued
after her arrest when she’d found herself standing before Judge Franklin P.O.
Merkle. Merkle’s exact words were, “You again?”

He’d set her
bail at an obscene five thousand dollars.

Psychic readings
weren’t illegal in the City of Ashburn, Florida, but selling magic potions skirted the legal line of medicine, hence her
arrest. And then there was the sticky issue of not having a business
license—again. Minor infractions. So why did Merkle have such a burr up his
ass? Maybe because he was working late on Friday? The malicious cop with an
aversion to psychics hadn’t helped either.

Standing behind
bars at ten o’clock that night, listening to her Great Uncle Will royally chew
her butt, confirmed Mel’s dismal assessment of the situation.

“Psychic?”
Will’s deep voice rumbled the word. His tired eyes watched her from a weather worn
face. “Mel, honey, you ain’t no psychic. You’re a witch. You’re supposed to use
magic.”

He shook his
head. “I understand why you can’t get a regular job, but can’t you find
something irregular you’re good at? Or at least something legal?” He glanced over
his shoulder and pitched his voice lower. “You should’ve marked a cop soon as
he walked in the door, then spelled him out of making an arrest. You’re allowed
basic self-defense. I taught you that.”

Mel winced at
Uncle Will’s words. He had taught her. She was simply incredibly incompetent at
casting spells and making potions, and utterly terrified of making a mistake.
What if she hurt someone? Pretending to be a psychic and selling a few harmless
herbal elixirs was easier—and safer.

They’d put her
in a simple holding cell inside the precinct station after she’d seen the
judge. The arrangement gave detainees a chance to post bail before they moved
them to the main jail downtown, something Mel had hoped to avoid. Prospects
didn’t look good.

The sparse cell
had a single bench bolted to the floor and air filled with the odor of acrid, nose-searing
bleach. Her cellmates, two tough prostitutes, sat on the bench staring straight
at the wall. Imperfect witch she might be, but she could still deal with the
bullying they tried when she first came in.

“Will, please,”
Mel begged. “Go talk to Milo for me. Give him an IOU. I’ll get the money some
way.” Milo the Bail Bondsman, her father’s second cousin, usually handled her
bail. Milo hadn’t returned any of her numerous calls.

“Yeah. Sure.”
Will laughed, but it didn’t sound funny. “Gettin’ money some way is what landed
you here. I can hear Milo now. Cousin Melian? She told my Granny Panopoulos to
put all her money on a horse named Show-Too in the third race and—”

“I told her
thirty dollars to show on the number three horse, not… Oh, hell.” She wrapped
her hands around the bars to steady herself.

Granny
Panopoulos had cried to Mel about not being able to pay her mortgage and buy
food in the same month. She figured Granny could lose thirty dollars and learn
an excellent lesson about the futility of gambling. How was Mel to know the
woman had fifty thousand dollars tucked in her mattress and a persistent bookie
looking over her shoulder? Oh, right, she was supposed to be a psychic.

“Okay, girl,
here’s the deal.” Will shoved his hands in his pockets like he always did when
he had to deliver bad news. “I’ll get you out on Monday—” “Monday?”

“Yep. I’m not
going to call Milo on a Friday evening or ruin his weekend. And I don’t trust anyone
else.” Will’s head bobbed. His sorrowful expression tore at her. His eyes
remained bright and his mind-dagger sharp, but time had worn his aging body. He
loved her, and she shouldn’t have troubled him.

“Ya’ know
Mel...” He sighed. “Honey, you’re twenty-seven years old. Couple of days and nights
in jail won’t hurt. ‘Bout time you learned a lesson. Past time, in fact. While
you’re there, think about having to stay longer, what might happen then.” He
turned and shuffled out of the room.

Mel leaned her
forehead against the cold hard bars. What a stinking mess. She wasn’t a true
psychic, but the power, the magic she lived by, occasionally gave her glimpses
into the situations surrounding people. A haphazard thing she couldn’t control,
but between it and the potions, she made a little money—as long as some cop
with an attitude didn’t arrest her.

Mel had paid
little attention when the nervous young man with dark, curly hair entered her low-rent
storefront room four hours ago. He had a sweet, shy smile and almost pretty
face. Not a hint of a cop in him. He paid her forty dollars for a reading and
asked her if he would ever find true love. His precise words. “True love.” That
alone should have tipped her off. She felt sorry for him and tried to sell him
a magic potion. Only a twenty-dollar mixture of Vitamin B and Ginseng, but with
the power of suggestion, it might be enough to adjust his outlook on life. He
was far too good-natured and attractive to be alone. Then his partner had
charged in and gleefully busted her. It didn’t take much to make some cops
happy.

My Review: I received this book from the author in exchange for an honest review
Sometimes I'm just in the mood for a fun, lighthearted read. Casual Curses & Meticulous Magic fit the bill perfectly. This is one of those books that will make you smile, laugh, and just make your day a touch lighter.

Mel was wild, unpredictable, and completely devoted to the Gramarye and its tenants. Money was hard to come by thanks to her uncle, forcing her to resort to some shady dealings to get by. She made me laugh, and I found myself liking her immediately, despite the fact she was in jail. Mel is as adorable and quirky as her tenants in the Gramarye.

Romantic interest Titus, or Tiger as Mel likes to call him, was sweet and rather charming. He was quick to jump to Mel's aid and defense once he learned magic was real and not Mel's delusion. The romance between the two was also rather sweet. I hope we get more insight into his past in future books.

The secret world of magic and witches was intriguing, though with someone like Mel, I wonder how they managed to keep it a secret. I loved the large cast of secondary characters, from ghosts to a poetic demon to a man-hungry plant. These characters made the book so much fun and quite interesting as well. Though book one in a series, this novel had a most satisfying ending. I'm really looking forward to reading more about the Gramarye and the intriguing cast of characters.

About the Author

Lee Roland is a full time writer
who lives in North Central Florida. She loves the peaceful rural area where she
shares a home with three small dogs who think they are pit bulls and an evil
cat with sharp claws.

Lee writes stories of urban
fantasy and paranormal romance where strong men and women battle the wickedness
hiding under the surface of the modern world.
Her characters are passionate in life and love and are formidable enemies
to the malevolent criminals in their worlds.

Her first series, the Earth
Witches, was published beginning in 2011 by NAL. Her website, www.leeroland.com offers samples
of the Earth Witches books and information on their world. There are short
stories and news of any upcoming books and events.

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About Me

Bestselling and award-winning YA author with a soft spot for sweet romance. In addition to writing, she works as an editor for two publishers, as well as select indie authors. She shares her home with her teenage son, three dogs, and lots of dragons. Kimber Leigh is addicted to romance, videogames, superheroes, villains,
and chocolate—not necessarily in that order. (If she has to choose, she’ll take
a chocolate covered superhero!) She currently lives in San Antonio, TX but has
been somewhat a rolling stone in life, having resided in several different
cities and states.